


Espresso-ily For You

by HongBining



Series: Welcome to Pledis Monthly [3]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Fluff, M/M, OH YEAH THERES SOME JIHANCHEOL MENTION TOO WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT, aka my faves like wowie i love them, because why not, jihoon is bitter just like the coffee, jk its good coffee unless hansol is making it, verkwan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-30
Updated: 2016-08-30
Packaged: 2018-08-12 00:21:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7913164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HongBining/pseuds/HongBining
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Seungkwan hates coffee, but at least the boy making it for him is pretty cute.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Espresso-ily For You

**Author's Note:**

> a third installment of the pledis monthly series featuring verkwan!

Seungkwan lets out an elongated sigh, slouching in his office chair that was in no way good for his back.

 

It’s 12:03pm, and he’s exhausted. And bored. The most unbearable combination of feelings.

 

He lets out a groan so loud that it catches the attention of his cubicle neighbor, Jeon Wonwoo.

 

Wonwoo peaks his head over the partition screen so he’s looking down into Seungkwan’s space.

 

“You’re being quite vocal over there,” Wonwoo deadpans. “Are you dying?”

 

Seungkwan places his hands over his face and lets out another dramatic sigh.

 

“Yes, in fact, I am,” he says. “I spend all these days writing for a romance and dating magazine column, when I’m the only one in this office who’s still  _ single _ .” He crosses his arms and pouts.

 

Seungkwan has never actually been on a date.

 

From watching (admittedly, way too many) romance dramas, he’s gotten a pretty good idea of how dating works, which lets him offer the readers of Pledis Monthly the highest quality advice he has on the topic.

 

“That’s not true,” replies Wonwoo, who is now standing with his hands folded on top of the screen.

 

“Says you,” Seungkwan scoffs, rolling his eyes. “You and Mingyu have been dating for how long now?”

 

Wonwoo blushes. “Five months,” he answers.

 

“See?” Seungkwan says. “And not to mention Jun and Minghao too. They’re so _ in love _ .” He scrunches his face to further express his disgust.

 

Seungkwan is still pouting when Wonwoo decides to console his friend with an offer.

 

“Tell you what. Mingyu and I were planning to go out for lunch at the café, would you care to join us?”

 

As much as Seungkwan didn’t want to be a third wheel, he figured anything would beat staying behind in the office during his break.

 

“Sure,” he agrees. “Let’s go.”

 

//

 

Wonwoo and Seungkwan are waiting outside the entrance to the office building when Mingyu comes bursting out, camera strapped around his neck as per usual.

 

Immediately, his face lights up upon seeing Wonwoo.

 

“Hi honey!” he says, kissing his cheek. He turns his head and sees Seungkwan, and gives him a friendly smile. “And hello, Seungkwan!”

 

“Hi,” Seungkwan says, forcing a grin as he watches Wonwoo smile and return a quick kiss back.

 

As much as he enjoyed the idea of it, romance always seemed less appealing to Seungkwan when he wasn’t the one experiencing it.

 

The three of them walk to the bus stop and board the one headed in the direction of the café.

 

Today, the bus driver is a man named Seungcheol, who Mingyu and Wonwoo seem to know quite well. Seungkwan says hello, and they make small talk.

 

Seungkwan learns that Seungcheol the bus driver has been in a relationship with his two boyfriends ( _ No fair, _ Seungkwan thinks,  _ How can people get  _ two  _ when I can't manage to get  _ one _?) _ for nearly three years now. They’re  _ all  _ bus drivers, and share an apartment downtown together.

 

“Ah, that's right!” Wonwoo calls from his seat next to Mingyu. “Jeonghan told us this morning how you broke like,  _ four _ mugs yesterday.”

 

Seungcheol lets out a groan. “It wasn't entirely  _ my  _ fault. Jisoo was responsible for breaking at least one  _ and a half _ .”

 

Seungkwan doesn't want to know.

 

Thankfully, he doesn't have to find out, as Seungcheol pulls up to the bus stop in front of the café and opens the doors, waving them goodbye as they unboarded.

 

The café looks plain from the outside, the only standout feature being the huge, bold letters reading  _ Seoul’s Specialty _ .

 

Mingyu leads the way inside, Wonwoo trailing close behind and Seungkwan making a commendable effort to stay keep up.

 

The aroma of coffee fills all of Seungkwan’s senses when they enter the café. It doesn't have many tables and chairs, and they're all occupied with people chatting and sipping drinks, save for one round table in the corner of the room.

 

The café is bustling, especially at this lunch hour, and Seungkwan hopes that empty table will become theirs. Standing in this long line to order was starting to get unpleasant.

 

Then again, he’d rather  _ stand _ on this line than  _ sit _ within earshot of Mingyu and Wonwoo’s flirting.

 

“…Yeah, but I tried that last time, remember? I don't think the dressing was that good, love,” Wonwoo says to Mingyu, which directs Seungkwan’s attention towards the café’s surprisingly large menu suspended above them.

 

Seungkwan shimmies next to the couple and assesses his options. He decides that he'll order a turkey and Swiss sandwich on a small baguette and a cup of fruit juice.

 

“ _ Fruit juice?”  _ Wonwoo says, cocking his head to the side. “We’re at a  _ café _ . Which serves  _ coffee _ . Which is kind of the reason people come here. For the  _ coffee _ .”

 

“I know,” Seungkwan says, rolling his eyes. “I just don't understand the appeal of coffee. It's just bean water.”

 

Wonwoo and Mingyu’s jaws drop at the same time as they turn to face each other at the same time, as if Seungkwan had just insulted the couple's first born child.

 

They turn with their mouths agape to look at a now befuddled Seungkwan.

 

“ _ Bean _ water? Have you even  _ tried _ coffee? It's like, the best thing  _ ever!”  _ Mingyu says, waving his arms excitedly for emphasis. Wonwoo is gazing over at him lovingly, and Seungkwan can  _ literally feel  _ the affection seeping out of him. He shakes his head no in response.

 

“Seungkwan, the least you could do is try it,” says Wonwoo, loosely linking his arm with Mingyu’s.

 

“Order the special,” he suggests.

 

Mingyu nods in agreement, pointing out the part of the menu that literally just reads ‘The Special.’

 

Seungkwan agrees, figuring he could add extra creamer and sugar if he didn't like it (he knew already that he wouldn't) and they line up single file in the same order that they'd entered the café.

 

“Hi Chan,” Wonwoo greets the boy standing behind the counter. “Busy day today, huh?”

 

“Yep,” says Chan, tearing off a page of his notepad and handing it to another barista running around behind him. “What'll it be today?”

 

Wonwoo orders, followed by Mingyu, and Seungkwan steps up when Chan glances down at his watch and begins to take off his apron.

 

“Sorry,” Chan grumbles. “It's my break. Gotta blast.” He disappears into a door behind all the coffee apparatuses and leaves Seungkwan standing there, dumbfounded.

 

He glances over at Wonwoo, who simply rolls his eyes and gestures towards the free table, which isn't so free anymore since Mingyu is sitting there, and Seungkwan takes it as a signal that they'll be there waiting by the time he gets his order.

 

If he could even  _ place his order. _

 

He begins to rap his fingers on the countertop, daydreaming about his knight in shining armor whisking him away on a noble stallion when he hears a loud noise from behind the counter.

 

A new barista shows up, frantically tying the apron around his waist and hastily running his hands through his hair in attempt to smooth it out. He was wearing a work uniform similar to everyone’s else's; black shirt with a brown and white pinstripe apron accompanied by a small name tag. This boy’s name tag reads ‘Hansol.’

 

Hansol is making noises that sound vaguely like beat boxing as he whips out his own notepad and pencil. He looks up at Seungkwan and smiles brightly at him.

 

_ What a really nice smile _ , Seungkwan observes.  _ Real nice dental hygiene. _

 

“Sorry about that. There was some miscommunication about who was working what shift and blah blah blah,” Hansol says, twirling the pencil in his fingers. “What can I get ya?”

 

Seungkwan is distracted by Hansol’s pencil tricks before blurting out his order.

 

“Oh, right, can I also have the um, special?” he tacks on at the end.

 

Hansol lets out an excited squeal. “Oh,  _ awesome!  _ Jihoon  _ finally  _ let me come up with the special today, and you're the first person to order it! Hold on while I go make it!”

 

He darts away from the counter, and Seungkwan hears a chorus of exasperated sighs behind him of people who just want to place their orders without an interruption every five seconds.

 

It wasn't Seungkwan’s fault. It's not like he expected the one barista taking orders at this hour to leave.

 

Hansol is replaced by another barista, who dons the same uniform, only the name tag reads ‘Jihoon,’ and underneath that, ‘Manager.’

 

“Please proceed to the pick up counter over there,” he points out to Seungkwan. “Hansol is there with your order. Next!”

 

Seungkwan can detect a hint of frustration in his voice. He does as he’s told as he makes his way to Hansol, who is standing there with his sandwich and a fairly large to-go cup.

 

“Here it is!” he exclaims. “Try it! Let me know how it is! Try it  _ right now _ !”

 

Seungkwan nods enthusiastically, and forces himself to take a swig of the drink.

 

In that moment, Seungkwan feels his life flash before his eyes. This was probably one of the  _ worst _ beverages he's ever tasted.

 

No amount of creamer and sugar could improve it. It's a combination of all the  _ worst _ flavors; bitter, sour, maybe a little spicy.

 

But Hansol looks so happy watching him try his special. He can't offend him.

 

Seungkwan tries his best to mask his disgust as he takes another sip.

 

“It's great,” he croaks, giving Hansol a weak thumbs up.

 

In response, Hansol does a fist pump, shouting something like  _ ‘yessssssssssssssssss!’  _ in English.

 

_ “ _ Yay!” he says, beaming. “I'm so glad, that took me  _ hours _ to come up with! Hey, what's your name? You should come back more, I'll make you some more stuff!” He playfully nudges Seungkwan’s arm with his elbow.

 

Seungkwan thought he could die on the spot with the repulsive taste of the coffee, but Hansol’s bright smile and cheery expression brings him back.

 

“I’m Boo Seungkwan,” he responds. He can't help but smile back (how could he not?). “I’m sure I can find time to come around again.”

 

He bids farewell to Hansol as he makes his way to his table, where Mingyu and Wonwoo have nearly finished their sandwiches.

 

Seungkwan, despite his hatred of coffee only receiving more justification, decides that maybe making regular trips to this café could become a part of his everyday routine.

 

//

 

“Oh my God. Wonwoo, you owe me ten thousand won.”

 

Seungkwan, who has just returned from his lunch break, walks over to his cubicle, where Wonwoo and Junhui are standing, eyeing the to-go cup in his hand. Wonwoo is fumbling for his wallet and Junhui has his hand out to accept the payment.

 

“What's going on?” Seungkwan asks suspiciously, settling into his office chair and placing his belongings on his desk, beverage included.

 

“Wonwoo didn't think you could go _two_ full work weeks buying coffee, but _I_ _did,_ ” Junhui gloats, “and now I'm ten thousand won richer!”

 

Seungkwan rolls his eyes, taking a sip from the cup.

 

Hansol’s Friday special tasted about the same as Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, only Friday had a hint of, maybe caramel?

 

The taste is still unbearable, but Seungkwan likes to think Hansol added some at his suggestion to include a hint of sweetness, which is the only criticism he has had to offer. The rest of the time, he's concealed a multitude of disgusted expressions and praised Hansol for how delicious and inventive his coffee was.

 

This made Hansol really elated, and he'd smile from ear to ear, and Seungkwan couldn't help but smile back.

 

“I mean, I guess coffee isn't that bad,” Seungkwan says nonchalantly, shrugging his shoulders. He takes another sip to prove his point.

 

“Whatever you say,” says Junhui, who is whisked away by Minghao pulling him by the hand towards his office, closing the door behind them (Seungkwan  _ knows _ what those two get up to in there. He might not actually see inside, but he  _ knows _ .)

 

Seungkwan is left with Wonwoo, who’s standing with his arms folded and eyebrows raised skeptically.

 

“What's up?” Seungkwan asks.

 

Wonwoo begins to click his tongue and shake his head.

 

“I'm pretty sure you're not going back to the café for the coffee, Seungkwan,” Wonwoo remarks.

 

The blush forming on Seungkwan’s face only justifies that Wonwoo is correct in his analyzation.

 

“It’s that one barista who made it for you that first time, isn’t it?” Wonwoo guesses. “Hansol?”

 

“Hey, you know, he’s a really sweet guy. He’s really passionate about his coffee making, and it actually doesn’t taste...as awful as you would think!”

 

//

  
  


He’s gotten to know Hansol pretty well over these past weeks.

 

Hansol has a younger sister, is fluent in both Korean and English, and studies sociology over at the city university, not too far from the café,

 

“This is usually my only down time of the day,” Hansol tells Seungkwan on a slow Tuesday afternoon. “Working, I mean. I have class like,  _ right _ after my shift.”

 

They’re sitting on stools at a tabletop facing outside. Seungkwan is trying to swallow the coffee, but it tastes faintly similar to the way cleaning product smells.

 

“That’s insane,” Seungkwan says. “I could never do that. Why didn’t you just settle for a shift later in the day, when all your classes are finished?”

 

Hansol shrugs. “Honestly, I don’t know. I could have. But I just thought taking it at this time makes more sense, you know?” Seungkwan nods, though he personally would have done otherwise.

 

“Hey, you know, it’s cool that you’ve been coming here,” Hansol says shyly. “I--I kind of look forward to your visits these days.” Seungkwan looks up at Hansol, who’s staring out the window.

 

“Oh,” Seungkwan manages, trying to bury his face in his coffee cup. “It’s no trouble.”

 

“Coffee making is fun,” Hansol says.

 

He turns to face Seungkwan. “And I like that I can make it for you, and that you get to try it, and

stuff.” Hansol lets out a small chuckle.

 

Seungkwan smiles back.

 

Coffee is still terrible. But it’s a little less terrible when the person making it is really cute and handsome.

 

//

  
  


“Seungkwan, you’re  _ literally _ the  _ romance and dating _ column writer, it’s pretty obvious you’re using your own tricks to woo him over,” Wonwoo accuses. He’s still hovering over Seungkwan’s desk.

 

“Wait, I didn’t know you read my columns,” Seungkwan laughs. “I thought you only read your pretentious novels.”

 

Wonwoo ignores him.

 

“You’re only visiting the café and ordering the things he makes because you totally have a huge crush on him.”

 

He shakes his head. “I can’t believe  _ you _ , of all people, can’t see that!” Wonwoo says. “You’re the Pledis Monthly romance  _ guru _ !”

 

Junhui returns with hair slightly disheveled and an unbuttoned shirt.

 

“What’s going on?” he asks, making pathetic attempts to fix his hair with his hands.

 

“Seungkwan has a crush on the café barista!” Wonwoo exclaims, completely disregarding the changes in Junhui’s appearance. “And he’s too much of a wimp to realize!”

 

Junhui gasps. “You mean to tell me that our romance and dating column writer  _ finally _ gets to experience romance and dating for himself?!” He teasingly pokes Seungkwan’s arm.

 

“Shut up, Jun,” Seungkwan mumbles, shooing him away and turning his chair around.

 

“No, but seriously,” Junhui says, fumbling with his shirt. “You can’t keep drinking this kid’s coffee forever and expect him fall in love with you.”

 

Wonwoo is nodding.“Plus, it’s  _ atrocious _ coffee,” he adds. “It's fine when he follows Jihoon’s recipes, but on his own is a whole other story.  _ I  _ can’t handle it, so just watching  _ you _ drink it is absurd.”

 

Seungkwan sighs.

 

“Seungkwan,” Wonwoo soothes. “Your columns always tell readers to be straightforward with their feelings, something about it being better than what they do in the dramas, I don't know. But that's something I think you should do.”

 

Seungkwan swivels around to face them in his chair. Wonwoo was right. He wasn’t taking his own advice.

 

And with that, Seungkwan made plans to go to the café tomorrow and tell Hansol.

 

Not that his coffee , of course.

 

At least not yet.

 

//

  
  


Seungkwan hops off the bus, now standing directly in front of  _ Seoul’s Specialty. _

 

He takes out his phone one final time to read the single message of encouragement he had received from Wonwoo on the way there.

 

**_xJWonUx <12:15pm>_ **

**_u got this_ **

  
  


Returning his phone to his pocket, Seungkwan steps into the café. Immediately, he's relieved to see that it's another slow day for the café, with only a handful of customers occupying the tables.

 

Hansol is wiping the countertop down with a rag in one hand and a spray bottle in the other. He's so occupied with cleaning that takes him a while for him to realize that Seungkwan is in front of him.

 

“Oh!” Hansol chirps. “Hey Seungkwan!” He uses the rag hand to give a quick wave.

 

“Hey Hansol,” Seungkwan says back. “How's it going?” He leans with his elbow on the counter, in attempt to ‘feign coolness,’ as Junhui had instructed.

 

“Great,” Hansol replies. “I have your usual all done for you.”

 

Hansol nods towards the pick up counter, and motions for Seungkwan to follow him there, so he does.

 

_ Huh, Hansol’s never had anything prepared for me this quickly _ , Seungkwan wonders, spotting his usual sandwich and to-go cup already out on a tray.

 

Hansol reaches out for the to-go cup and hands it to Seungkwan.

 

“Here’s the special today,” he says. “Let me know what you think.”

 

There's something oddly serious about Hansol’s demeanor today. Seungkwan brushes that thought aside as he braces himself for whatever concoction is about to enter his body today.

 

And oh Lord, it's probably the most heinous one yet.

 

Seungkwan can actually feel himself starting to gag, but for Hansol’s sake, he tries to drink it as politely as he can.

 

“Well?” Hansol asks, head tilted to one side.

 

Seungkwan nods and takes another sip, but unfortunately for him it goes down the wrong tube, and he immediately erupts into a violent coughing fit.

 

“Whoa whoa  _ whoa!”  _ Hansol says, hopping over the counter to console Seungkwan, who's leaning over with his free hand resting on his knee. He places his hands on Seungkwan’s back to calm him down.

 

They're soon joined by the manager, Jihoon, who, rather than trying to help Seungkwan, begins to scold Hansol.

 

“ _ Hansol!  _ I  _ cannot believe you _ !” he shrills. “Did you  _ actually  _ serve him that?” He points to the cup in Seungkwan’s hand.

 

“Well, uh, yeah I did,” Hansol responds shakily. “Didn't I mention, for my  _ experiment _ \--”

 

“WHAT?” Seungkwan manages in between coughs. “ _ Experiment?! _ ” He finally musters the strength to stand and looks at Hansol.

 

Seungkwan has no idea what's going on.  _ This is NOT what happens in the dramas! _

 

Jihoon rolls his eyes and turns to the customers at the tables.

 

“Nothing to see here,” he reassures the concerned onlookers. “Please keep enjoying your food."

 

Seungkwan lets out one final mini cough before finally asking Hansol about his aforementioned ‘experiment.’

 

Hansol bites his lip. “Follow me,” he says, unlocking the countertop so it can be pulled up.

 

And with that, Seungkwan trails Hansol to the back room of the café.

 

//

 

They're sitting in a huge storage closet, lined with crates and boxes filled with all kinds of ingredients necessary for running a café. Hansol figured it would be the best place for them to chat, especially after the whole fiasco that just took place.

 

Seungkwan is sitting on a box labeled ‘coffee filters,’ with Hansol across from him on one that's marked as ‘mocha beans.’

 

He has provided Seungkwan with a bottle of water as consolation, so he happily drinks as he awaits Hansol’s explanation.

 

“I, uh, well, you see,” Hansol stammers, twiddling his thumbs.

 

Hansol takes a deep breath and sighs. “I made your coffee disgusting today on purpose,” he confesses.

 

Seungkwan’s eyes widen.  _ On purpose?! What were those other days then?!  _ He takes another long sip from the water bottle.

 

“What was in it?” Seungkwan asks carefully.

 

Hansol looks up for a moment, trying to remember. He mutters to himself in English before turning back to Seungkwan.

 

“Well, I used stale beans to make the grounds, for starters,” he explains. “And then I may or may not have squeezed like, an  _ entire  _ lemon in there.”

 

He clenches and unclenches his hand to represent the action of squeezing a lemon, as if Seungkwan didn't know what that could possibly look like.

 

“But why?” Seungkwan asks, feeling like one of those young children who ask their parents about  _ everything _ .

 

“To see your reaction,” Hansol says.

 

Seungkwan blinks in confusion. Luckily, Hansol is armed with an explanation.

 

“You came for the first time like, two and a half weeks ago, I think. And I was all, ‘oh, this guy really likes coffee, how cool!’ but then by like, the eighth time you showed up and only asked for the coffee that  _ I  _ made, I began to get suspicious.”

 

“I figured you'd drop by today, so I came in an extra hour early and got Jihoon to direct me to the most disgusting things you could put in coffee, so I made a brew specifically with those...things,” Hansol says.

 

“Okay,” Seungkwan says, trying to gather this new information.

 

“And you drank it!  _ Twice _ !” Hansol says, a bit louder than before. “I was so surprised! Jihoon said it was terrible, so I was like, ‘there's no  _ way _ he'll drink this.’”

 

Seungkwan opens his mouth to say something, but nothing comes out.

 

“But you did drink it!  _ Twice!”  _ Hansol repeats. He's standing now, looming over Seungkwan, who suddenly feels small and inferior.

 

Hansol calms and sits back down on the mocha beans box.

 

Seungkwan clears his throat. “I, uh, actually really hate coffee,” he confesses. “I kept coming…just to see you, which, uh, you seem to have…figured out.”

 

Some confession  _ that _ was.

 

The storage closet is poorly lit, but across from him Seungkwan can see a smile slowly spread across Hansol’s face.

 

“You like me?” Hansol asks, his voice going high-pitched. Seungkwan frantically nods, and then confirms verbally that  _ yes,  _ he does indeed.

 

“I probably should've told you from the get go,” Seungkwan says. “To, you know, avoid all this.”

 

“Yeah, you probably should have,” Hansol teases, poking Seungkwan’s arm. “It would've taken much less figuring out on my part.”

 

“Wait,  _ wait _ , so do you like me too?” Seungkwan asks dumbly, just to confirm.

 

Hansol throws his head back and laughs. “ _ Of course _ I do, Seungkwan!” he says. “I was  _ so _ nervous this whole week trying to figure out if you felt the same way!”

 

“Well, surprise, I do!” Seungkwan replies. He didn't realize before, but his face is really close to Hansol’s now, like  _ really  _ close, and boy, does Hansol look gorgeous up close.

 

“Let's go out sometime!” Hansol says. “It doesn't have to be here, though. What are your thoughts on laser tag?”

 

Suddenly, laser tag sounds like Seungkwan’s new favorite thing.

 

“I  _ love  _ laser tag,” Seungkwan hears himself say. “When do you wanna go?”

 

They plan a date for that upcoming Saturday. Seungkwan gets Hansol’s phone number, and they exit the storage closet together as they walk out to the bus stop.

 

The 1:30pm bus pulls up. Seungkwan turns to Hansol to say goodbye.

 

He’s not sure what to do. His romance and dating column offered no advice on what to do after you’ve planned a date with someone, but that date wouldn’t be for a couple more days.

 

He can’t kiss him yet,  _ obviously _ , but a hug seems too awkward. He settles with placing a hand on his shoulder. Hansol blushes.

 

“Well, I’ll see you on Saturday, Hansol,” Seungkwan says. “You...you’re great.”

 

Hansol takes Seungkwan’s hand and gives it a small squeeze.

 

“You too, Seungkwan,” he says fondly, slowly letting him go so he can board the bus.

 

And with that, Seungkwan waves a final farewell to Hansol (until Saturday, that is).

 

Through the window, Hansol mouths  _ I’ll call you _ , and Seungkwan giggles as the bus pulls away.

 

_ Finally _ . He’s done it. The romance and dating column writer of Pledis Monthly has at long last, been granted the opportunity to get a hand at romance and dating himself.

 

Seungkwan never thought he’d see the day where he would actually  _ thank _ coffee, but since it’s gotten him a date with one of the cutest people he’s ever met, he can’t help but silently express his gratitude.

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> seungkwan = hansol trash number one #confirmed


End file.
